Tangled in Skull Island
by laze jovanov
Summary: The sequel to 'Invasion of Skull Island': As they journey to find the origin of the magical black rocks, Rapunzel and her friends come across a mysterious and magical bridge that leads to an equally mysterious island, called 'Skull Island'. But what they will discover there will change their lives forever!
1. Chapter 1

**This is a sequel to my previous Tangled/Kong: Skull Island crossover story, 'Invasion of Skull Island'! In the first story, Kong arrived to the outside world and met Rapunzel and her friends! Now, Rapunzel and her friends will go to Skull Island! Where they will face new dangers and meet new allies! And discover the history of Kong!**

 **This story was mostly inspired by Season 2 of 'Tangled: The Series' and the comic 'Skull Island: The Birth of Kong', the comic book sequel to 'Kong: Skull Island'.**

* * *

At least seven months had passed since the invasion of the Skullcrawlers and Kong's arrival to Corona. King Fredric, extremely fearful of what they had faced that day, ordered the walls of Corona to be increased in size and height to make sure no monster comes here and threatens them again, but he also prevented Rapunzel from ever leaving the walls without his consent. But little did the King know...monsters can come in ALL shapes and sizes. Varian, a very skilled alchemist, was a good friend of Rapunzel and her friends, but after Rapunzel was forced to abandon his pleads for help due to a greater crisis in Corona, Varian felt very hurt and betrayed.

He manipulated Rapunzel to show him the location of the flower that gave Rapunzel's powers by pretending he forgave her before stealing the flower. But then quickly realized that the magic of the flower now exists within Rapunzel's hair.

On Rapunzel's nineteenth birthday, Varian sent an Automaton to attack Corona, which caused Frederic to lock Rapunzel in her room to keep her safe from further danger. Eugene and Cassandra helped break her out to go after Varian, but the alchemist used his pet raccoon, mutated into a monstrous beast, to assault the kingdom, incapacitating many of the Royal Guards and using the chaos to kidnap Arianna, whom he used as leverage to lure Rapunzel to Old Corona. Led by Cassandra, Eugene, Rapunzel, and Frederic, the Royal Guards layed siege to Varian's house, who used automatons to keep them at bay.

Varian trapped Fredric and Rapunzel in his lab and then attempted to use Rapunzel's hair to free his father with a machine he built, but it was of no use. Angry and with nothing left to lose, Varian used a giant automaton to attack everyone. He then threatened to kill Cassandra and Arianna. Rapunzel, however, discovered a connection to the black rocks and quickly used her new powers to defeat Varian and destroy the rest of his automatons. Varian was later arrested for his crimes and vowed vengeance.

Rapunzel noticed that the rocks were now pointing away from Corona, and towards an unknown destination beyond the border wall, a path which Rapunzel was _encouraged_ to follow.

Realizing his mistake in keeping Rapunzel's free spirit away from the world, and that the world is place that MUST be explored, despite the dangers, King Fredric finally allowed Rapunzel to leave the walls of Corona and journey to discover the mystery of the rocks.

She was accompanied by Eugene, Cassandra, Pascal, Owl, Maximus, Findella, Lance Strongbow, Hook-Foot and Shorty as they all began traveling via a large colorful caravan that was pulled by the two horses, following the path of the black rocks.

* * *

The heroes and heroines were currently walking through a seemingly deserted forest, no birds were singing and no animals could be seen, still following the trail of the rocks.

"Okay, I don't scare easily, but this place sure gives me the creeps." Lance commented with a hint of fear as he looked around.

"Awww...big, though Lance scared of a little forest?" Cassandra couldn't help but tease him.

"Hey, don't tease my partner like that?" Eugene scolded.

"Yeah! Don't tease me!" Lance also scolded.

"He happens to be one of the braves former thieves that I know!" Eugene added causing Lance to puff up his chest and act all though. "With a few five or seven things that he's really scared of, that I probably shouldn't mention."

"Eugene..." Lance suddenly gave him a stern look.

"Kidding!" Eugene exclaimed with fake laugh.

However, as they continued moving forward, Maximus and Fidella suddenly both stop, causing everyone in the caravan to nearly jolt out of the sudden and unexpected halt.

"Maximus! Next time warn me when you stop like that." Eugene now scolded Maximus.

"Hey, look at that!" Rapunzel said and pointed forward...to the reason _why_ the horses had just stopped.

The heroes/heroines had just exited the deserted forest, and now stood before an equally deserted beach. But the beach itself was not what shocked them...it was what resided in the water. It was a bridge...a very, very, _very_ large bridge that seemed to be made of bronze, and was residing above the water's surface with one end connecting to the beach they were on, and leading towards the far ocean, to an unknown location. The bridge was also one kilometer wide.

"Well, this day sure got interesting." Eugene muttered, never taking his eyes off the bridge.

Rapunzel said nothing but looked in shock. She then noticed that the trail of the black rocks was leading to the left side of the beach, away from the bridge.

"Any idea what _that_ is?" Eugene asked, looking at the gigantic bridge in surprise.

"Uhh...Maybe it's a bridge?" Cassandra asked mockingly and sarcastically.

"I mean...Yeah! I knew that!" Eugene stated, folding his arms and acting cool.

"Where do you think it goes?" Hook-Foot asked.

"Probably somewhere we're _not_ going." Cassandra stated, not willing to take any chances.

"I think we _should_ go." Rapunzel suddenly said, causing everyone - including Pascal and Eugene - to look at her in shock and surprise, as she got off the caravan and walked up to the bridge.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Blondie? I mean, we don't know where that leads to." Eugene argued. "For all we know, it could lead us to a dead end."

"For once, I agree with Eugene, Raps." Cassandra said. "And besides, the rocks lead _away_ from the bridge."

"I know, but...something inside me feels like we should go and see what's on the other side." Rapunzel stated, still looking at the bridge. "It's as if something's calling me."

Eugene and Cassandra looked at one-another, just as Lance and Hook-Foot did, unsure to what to say. They then turned back to Rapunzel, who was still looking at the bridge.

"Are sure about this, Raps?" Cassandra asked uneasily. "I mean, don't forget the rocks we're following, and this could just waste our time."

"I know, Cass." Rapunzel admitted, turning to her friend before turning back to the mysterious bridge. "But this strange feeling I'm having...it's telling me to go this way."

"C'mon, guys, what could possible go wrong?" Lance suddenly asked seemingly fearlessly.

"I can name a _ton_ of things, but I don't have the time." Cassandra muttered in annoyance.

"Alright, Blondie, we'll go your way." Eugene finally said with a smile.

"And who knows, maybe this bridge is a shortcut to where the rocks lead." Rapunzel added with a smile, being optimistic as usual.

"Well, better not waste anymore time then. Let's go!" Cassandra exclaimed. And with that, Maximus and Fidella both began moving forward, towards the bridge. Rapunzel quickly got back on the caravan as soon as it came close enough.

"You know, I have a feeling that this will _definitely_ be worth it." Rapunzel said with a bright smile as they finally entered the bridge and began moving forward, to where the bridge leads.

* * *

" _Afraid it won't come round again..._ _Afraid to move on..._

 _Wishing I could go back when..._  
 _When everything was easier and meaningful to me!_  
 _Wanting all we left behind..._  
 _Like its the answer..._  
 _An hour glass we can't rewind..._  
 _Holding back the life that I've been at for so long..._

 _Can I find my way to you?!_  
 _And after all that we've been through!_  
 _And after all we left in pieces!_  
 _I still believe our lives have just begun!_  
 _'Cause now the past can be outrun!_  
 _And I know you are the reason...!_  
 _I still believe the best is yet to come!_

 _A photograph's still in my hands..._  
 _Afraid to let it go..._  
 _The minutes rain like grains of sand..._  
 _And time is just a war that's stealing dreams from within..._  
 _So come and take them back again!_

 _And after all that we've been through!_  
 _And after all we left in pieces!_  
 _I still believe our lives have just begun!_  
 _'Cause now the past can be outrun!_  
 _And I know you are the reason!_  
 _I still believe the best is yet to come!_

 _I won't turn around!_  
 _Let it all slip away!_  
 _I'm never backing down!_  
 _'Cause tomorrow's a new day!_  
 _And everything can change...!_

 _And after all that we've been through!_  
 _And after all we left in pieces!_  
 _I still believe our lives have just begun!_  
 _'Cause now the past can be outrun!_  
 _And I know you are the reason!_  
 _I still believe the best is yet to come!_

 _I still believe the best is yet to come!_  
 _The best is yet to come!_  
 _I still believe the best is yet to come!_ "

Already a day or two had passed as the heroes/heroins relentlessly continued walking across the seemingly endless bridge with nothing in sight, yet.

"Ugh, this is taking forever!"Cassandra exclaimed in frustration. "Maybe we should turn back."

"Cass, if we turn back, it'll take even _more_ time!" Rapunzel said, trying to ease her friend. "Just have a little patience and-"

"Land ahoy!" Short suddenly exclaimed from the top.

"Yeah!" Rapunzel said. "Land aho-Wait, what?"

Suddenly, everyone _finally_ began seeing something in the distance - they began seeing...an island? Everyone in the caravan now looked in amazement to finally discover where this mysterious (and likely magical) bridge lead to.

"An island?" Cassandra asked in annoyance and disbelief. "We traveled for two straight days for an island?!"

"Simmer down, Land-in-Waiting." Eugene said in annoyance. "At least be thankful that our long journey - well, at least part of it - is over."

"C'mon, Cass, let's see what we can find on this island!" Rapunzel exclaimed excitedly and eagerly as she looked on.

"Hopefully no small people worshiping Pascal, again." Cassandra muttered, before noticing the same chameleon - who was on Rapunzel's shoulder - glaring at her. "Hey, I'm just saying."

With that, the heroes/heroins continued moving towards the mysterious island, not knowing what surprises to expect.

* * *

Finally, after thirty more minutes of walking across the bridge, the heroes/heroins finally reached the island as they got off their caravan and stepped foot on the sandy beach of the island. With the sun above shining brightly down upon them.

"Mmmm...Good to get out of that caravan again." Lance said as he stretched his arms and legs.

"Nothing special about this island." Cassandra muttered, folding her arms.

"Is there _anything_ special to you, Cassandra?" Eugene asked, also folding his own arms.

Rapunzel looked around the deserted sandy beach before turning towards lush jungle in front of them.

"Let's go!" She exclaimed before proceeding to enter the jungle, only to be stopped by Cassandra who called out to her.

"Rapunzel, wait! We don't know what could be lurking in that jungle!"

"C'mon, Cass, aren't you the least bit curious?" Rapunzel asked - somewhat teasingly - before turning and proceeding to enter the jungle. Lance then walked up to Cassandra.

"Awww...strong and though Cassandra scared of a little-" But he was quickly cut off when Cassandra suddenly grabbed him by the collar and brought him closer to her face.

"Say anything else, and you'll be picking off your broken teeth from your equally-broken mouth." Cassandra warned threateningly with a fierce growl. To which Lance simply said nothing and grinned sheepishly (no doubt out of fear) as Cassandra released him.

After Cassandra left and went after Rapunzel into the jungle, Hook-Foot walked up to Lance.

"Yeah, she's a real scary one, isn't she?" Hook-Foot asked.

"Pfft. I'm not scared of her one little bit." Eugene stated, acting all though, and causing Maximus and Fidella to sigh.

"Meeee neither..." Shorty said with his usual drunken tone, causing Eugene to sigh.

* * *

The heroes/heroins were now currently moving through the thick and lush jungle of the island, but they left the caravan back at the beach. Cassandra was using her sword to cut through vines and other plants that were in their way. Rapunzel, on the other hand, was having much more fun with this, as she was swinging from tree to tree, using both natural vines and her long hair to swing across the jungle - with Pascal on her shoulder.

"Wooo Hooo! This is fun!" Rapunzel exclaimed before she finally landed on the ground with the rest of her friends.

"Raps, I'm starting to feel like this is a waste of time." Cassandra said as she sliced another vine.

"For once, I agree with Cassandra, Rapunzel. What can we hope to find here?" Eugene asked as he continued moving along with the rest.

"Come on, you guys. Just a little further!" Rapunzel said eagerly, still following where these mysterious feelings are guiding her.

...

Eventually, after some time walking, the group finally escaped the thick, lush jungle, and arrived on an open grassland with beautiful green grass below them.

"Whew. At least that's over with." Eugene muttered.

"Now _this_ is more like it!" Lance exclaimed. "A wide open grassland, with a clear view!"

"I gotta admit, this _is_ pretty beautiful." Cassandra said, now smiling, putting her sword away.

See?" Rapunzel asked, turning to her friends with a smile before turning back to the face the grassland. Then thought came in Rapunzel's head... "Though it's weird that we haven't come across any animals yet."

"Maybe there aren't any here." Hook-Foot suggested.

Big mistake...

As the group were busy observing the grassland, out of nowhere and without warning... A Leafwing suddenly came _flying_ out of nowhere behind them, and _snatched_ Pascal, with it's talons, off of Rapunzel's shoulder as it flew past her.

The group were immediately taken completely by surprise by the sudden appearance of the flying reptile, as said flying reptile began flying upwards with it's chameleon prey!

"Pascal!" Rapunzel exclaimed as she looked up in horror as the Leafwing continued flying higher and higher with her chameleon friend, with Pascal crying our for help. Thinking quickly, Rapunzel quickly unwrapped her long, golden hair, allowing all seventy feet of it to drop on the ground. "Hold on, Pascal!" She said before grabbing some of her hair and using it as a lasso. She swung her long hair around, like cowboy would with a lasso, before _throwing_ it up in the air, and wrapping one of the Leafwing's talons.

Rapunzel then _pulled_ , causing the Leafwing to screech in surprise and jolt backwards, and accidentally release Pascal from it's grip...causing him to fall from dangerous height!

"Pascal!" Rapunzel exclaimed in horror.

But as Pascal was falling, Owl suddenly _flew_ in and grabbed Pascal in his talons, saving him!

"Nice going, Owl!" Rapunzel cheered, happy to see her long-time friend safe and sound.

Unfortunately, the Leafwing wasn't as pleased. Finally freeing itself from Rapunzel's hair, the small pterosaur flew higher, and let loose another loud screech.

"What's it doing now?" Eugene asked uneasily.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it's nothing that we can't handle!" Lance stated proudly.

Yet, another mistake...

Five seconds after it's screech, the group began noticing something in distance - up in the sky - coming their way. But then, everyone quickly paled in shock when they see that _that_ 'something' was _huge_ flock of Leafwings flying their way like a swarm of angry over-sized wasps. And they appeared to be hungry.

"You were saying?" Cassandra muttered as pulled her sword, ready for the assault.

The Leafwings began descending and flying lower and lower to the ground as they continued charging towards heroes/heroins, aiming their sharp beak-like proboscises at them. Rapunzel quickly grabbed her frying pan and was ready for the incoming pterosaurs.

One of the Leafwings was flying straight for Rapunzel, aiming it's sharp proboscis at her forehead. But instead...

 **WHAM!**

Rapunzel _smacked_ it out of the air with her frying pan before it could do any harm to her! Quickly after it's fall, another one came charging at the young princess, but it too was easily smacked away by the princess's 'weapon'!

The rest of the group also began fighting the small pterosaurs that began attacking them from everywhere!

Cassandra jumped in the air and kicked some of the winged terrors away! After she landed on the ground, another one came flying behind her, intending to stab her. But Cassandra quickly turned and countered it's sharp proboscis by blocking it with her sword, before grabbing the small terror by it's neck and throwing it at another Leafwing, knocking them both down!

Lance punched two of them with his fists, careful to avoid their sharp, pointy proboscises.

"Haha! They don't call be _Strong_ bow for nothing!" Lance bragged, flexing his muscles. But unfortunately, as he was bragging and showing off, a Leafwing came charging at him from behind, it's sharp proboscis aimed at his butt...

"AHHHHHHHH!"

Lance yelled out in pain as he jumped up, holding his butt in pain - where the Leafwing had stabbed him with it's proboscis.

Hook-Foot was also fighting several Leafwings, clashing his sword with their equally-sharp proboscises.

"Mean green birds!" He exclaimed before punching one in the head.

"I don't think that these things are birds." Eugene said before ducking down to avoid an incoming Leafwing that narrowly missed him.

"You can tell that these things aren't birds, and yet you can't tell that Pascal is a chameleon and not a frog?" Cassandra asked, possibly to mock him, while punching away another attacking Leafwing.

"Hey, give me a break Cassandra. Even I can't know everything." Eugene argued.

Meanwhile, three Leafwings turned to Owl (who was still carrying Pascal with him) and began chasing them! Seeing them, Owl quickly picked up speed and began flying as fast as he could in order to avoid becoming the Leafwings' meals. But he wasn't the only one... Rapunzel also noticed the three Leafwings going after Pascal and Owl. Gaining a determined look on her face, Rapunzel threw her frying pan at Eugene, who quickly caught it.

"Thanks, Blondie!" Eugene said before turning and grinning confidently at some incoming Leafwings. "Now, let's see what you spear-heads got!"

The first Leafwing charged at him, ready to stab it's proboscis in Eugene's chest. But like a professional tennis player, Eugene _smacked_ it out of the air with the frying pan! Another one then quickly came after the previous one's fall, but it too was met with a frying pan to the face! Then a third came, but it two was met with the same fate as it's previous two brethren!

"Ha! Not so though now, are you? You little pipsqueaks!" Eugene smirked.

Rapunzel grabbed part of her long hair - and just like before - began swinging it around like a lasso, before _throwing_ it up in the air at one of the Leafwings that was chasing Owl and Pascal. The hair wrapped both of the Leafwing's talons! But the pterosaur had no time to react as Rapunzel (still holding her hair that was wrapped around it) swung it around and smacked it against another nearby Leafwing, knocking them both down!

Now with only one Leafwing to worry about, Pascal smiled and gave Rapunzel a thumbs up, to which Rapunzel responded with her own smile and thumbs up.

"These things are no match for us, right Shorty?" Eugene asked while smacking another attacking Leafwing.

"Yeah...so right...!" Shorty said... as two Leafwings had already grabbed him, and were carrying him off.

"Oh, brother..." Eugene sighed before throwing the frying pan like a boomerang, striking the two Leafwings, knocking them down and dropping Shorty. Thankfully, they were only one-and-a-half meter off the ground when they fell.

Things seemed to be on the heroes/heroins' side... but then suddenly...

A Leafwing was charging at Cassandra (who readied her sword) with full speed... before it suddenly halted (stopping two meters away from Cassandra) and hovered in mid-air - flapping it's wings to stay airborne. Then, without a second thought, the Leafwing quickly turned and began flying away! And it wasn't alone - all of the Leafwings that were attacking the heroes/heroins suddenly began doing the same thing. They quickly stopped their assault, and began flying away for no apparent reason.

Owl quickly stopped when he noticed the attacking Leafwing had turned away and was flying in the opposite direction along with the rest of it's brethren.

They left almost as quickly as they came...

"What got into them?" A-now-confused Cassandra asked as she watched the large flock fly farther and farther away, as if they were in a hurry.

"Isn't it obvious?" Lance asked, walking up to her. "We won! Now those little terrors will think _twice_ before they mess with us!" Once again, he began to show off, much to Cassandra's annoyance.

"I don't think that's the reason why they left." Rapunzel said unsure, still looking at the direction of where the flock went. At this point, Owl flew near her and dropped Pascal in Rapunzel's hands as she gently caught him. "Oh, Pascal...I'll never let you out of my sight again!" Rapunzel exclaimed happily as she happily hugged her chameleon friend, to which Pascal hugged her back - or at least he hugged her left cheek.

"Well, I, for one, am glad that those little flying spear-heads left us." Eugene said proudly as he walked up to Rapunzel. "But then again, I _was_ having a little fun when I was smacking those little beasts with my awesome weapon." He added, lifting the frying pan as if it were a sword, causing Rapunzel to giggle a bit.

But their apparent victory was short-lived...

Everyone suddenly heard very different kind of screeches coming from behind them - from above - which were also much louder... and more aggressive-sounding.

"Not again..." Cassandra muttered in annoyance as she, and everyone else, turned around and looked up, expecting more Leafwings to face.

But instead, their faces turned into that of shock and surprise when they look up and see what _actually_ was heading their way; there were about three large, flying creatures heading their way. But these ones were very different from the previous flying creatures: they closely resembled over-sized bats than anything else - with each having a nine-foot wingspan - but lacked hair, ears or a visible nose, and their eyes appeared to be pupiless. These large creatures are also known as the top aerial predators of this island - and they are called, Psychovultures! The _real_ reason why the Leafwings left in such a hurry!

"Here we go again." Eugene muttered as he readied the frying pan.

In no time, Psychovultures were now hovering above the heroes/heroins, and looking down at them, trying to decide who to attack first.

"We handled those little things, before. How bad can these be? And there's only three of them." Lance once again said, acting all though and cocky.

Unfortunately, though, one of the Psychovultures decided show the group just how _bad_ they _can_ be. Opening it's mouth, the Psychovulture suddenly _fired_ an Electrical Blast from it's mouth at the group! Nearly striking Rapunzel! But the young princess was able to jump out the way (with Pascal) before the electrical attack could reach her, causing it to strike the ground and burn the grass instead!

"Rapunzel, are you alright?" Eugene quickly asked as he helped her up.

"I'm fine, thanks." She smiled, appreciating his concern for her well-being.

"Giant bats that shoot lightning?! Are you serious?!" Lance exclaimed in shock and disbelief.

"This is gonna be more difficult then I though." Cassandra commented as she readied her sword, along with Hook-Foot readying his sword, Eugene readying the frying pan and Rapunzel grabbing her hair and preparing to use it as her weapon of choice.

Without any more hesitation, the three Psychovultures began flying downwards at the group! Readying their sharp talons and teeth, and preparing to use their primary electrical weapons against the heroes/heroins! But just when they were only ten meters away from the group... seven strange balls (that appeared to be made of different plants mashed together) were suddenly _launched_ out of nowhere - upwards at them - before releasing some kind of smoke, causing the Psychovultures to quickly halt their prepared attack and start coughing from the thick smoke.

The heroes/heroins also began coughing from the smoke, that also became difficult to see by the second. Suddenly, a strange figure (covered in a bush-like suit) came running towards them.

"Come with me!" The figure said - judging by the voice, it seemed to be male - before running off into the nearby jungle. Having no other choice, the group quickly ran after him while the Psychovultures were distracted!

...

After a short time running, the gang were back in the lush jungle area, this time with the strange figure standing before them.

"I'm happy to see all of you made it safe and sound." The figure said with a now rather gentle voice.

"Thanks for saving us, Mister..." Rapunzel tried to thank him, but forgot she didn't know his name.

Slowly, the person removed his bush-like disguise; revealing a tall man that appeared to be twenty-five years old, judging by his appearance alone. In terms of height, he stood taller than Eugene, roughly as tall as Lance, but with a body-built similar to Eugene's. He had a very smooth face with no mustache or beard on it. His hair was a very light blonde color, and a bit longer than Eugene's hair. His eyes were a light blue color. He wore (what appeared to be) a white dress-shirt with long sleeves, and below, he wore black pants with black boots.

"Please, simply call me Angeal." The man now called Angeal said with a soft smile and a gentle tone.

* * *

 **That's it for this chapter, I hope you all liked it. The song was called 'Best Is Yet To Come'. Also, I apologize for any spelling errors that I may have in this chapter.**

 **But stay tuned! Because Rapunzel's adventure in Skull Island is just beginning!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I have an** **announcement to make: From now on, with each chapter I will also be giving some bios and profiles on the creatures that inhabit Skull Island.**

 **Leafwing:**

 **These small flying creatures are part of the pterosaur family, and thus they are NOT birds, but are in fact more closely related to reptiles such as crocodiles. Having a wingspan of only 5 feet, they may not seem like much of a threat, but make NO mistake; a single Leafwing is strong enough to carry a full-grown man, and their proboscis contain an anesthetic agent that (when injected into prey) reduces the victim's sensitivity to pain. The said victim will feel no pain even when the Leafwings begin eating it _alive_. But despite this, Leafwings are mostly ****scavengers that live off the kills of other predators, such as Skullcrawlers.**

 **Psychovulture:**

 **Like the LeafWings, Psychovultures are NOT bats, but are in fact reptiles. These terrifying aerial predators are quite feared... for good reasons:** **Psychovultures have a unique ability to shoot Electrical Blasts from their mouths that are used for both defense and to kill prey.** **Psychovultures also posses thermal-vision, allowing them to see hot-blooded prey from miles away, making** **Psychovulture _especially_ deadly at night. But the main reason the ****Psychovultures are given such a name is because of what they eat:** **Psychovultures _love_ eating poisonous Puffer Fish that are native to the waters of Skull Island. The poison of said puffer fish does not kill them, but actually puts them in a state of psychopathy. In this temporary ****psychopathic state, the** **Psychovultures become _even_ more dangerous and ****aggressive, leading them to hunt down and kill any creature they encounter, including their own kind. For the** **Psychovulture, it seems that to kill (without eating at all) is sustenance enough.**

* * *

The heores/heroines were still deep within the island's lush jungle, along with the mysterious man named Angeal.

"Thank you for saving us, Angeal." Rapunzel said happily with a soft smile.

"You are quite welcome, my Lady." Angeal said with gentle smile of his own, causing Rapunzel to giggle at his gentlemanly ways.

"What were those things, anyway?" Eugene now asked.

"They are creatures from a forgotten time that have now made this island their home." Angeal explained.

"And what's you're story with this island?" Cassandra asked, rising an eyebrow and folding her arms, not sure if they should trust this mysterious man.

"I was, and still am, a priest. I travel the world, going from place to place to offer confessions and hope to those who have lost faith." He explained. "I sailed through the seas to spread hope to those how deserve it. But my ship was struck by a raging storm, and I washed ashore on this island."

"Simple as that?" Cassandra asked, still folding her arms.

"Your skepticism is understandable." Angeal confirms, still maintaining his smile. "Now, may I ask for your names?"

"Sure! I'm Rapunzel," The princess pointed at herself before turning to her chameleon friend. "This is Pascal," She then turned to her other friends "That's Eugene, Cassandra, Lance, Maximus, Fidella, Hook-Foot and Shorty!"

"Well, it is a pleasure to meet you all." Angeal said calmly as he bowed his head at them. "Come, there is a village up-ahead, they will help you."

"Yeah, that's nice and all, but we're leaving." Cassandra said as she quickly went past Angeal, followed by her friends.

"If I may ask, did you come here via gigantic bridge that in the middle of the ocean?" He asked calmly.

Everyone quickly turned to him, and gave Angeal looks of surprise.

"Yes. Yes, we had." Rapunzel confirmed. "Why?"

Angeal sighed before continuing. "Then that will not be an option. The bridge has most likely submerged by now, and will not resurface for at least five days."

"Yeah, Angeal. That's funny, who knew priests can be so hilarious?" Eugene laughed, thinking Angeal was joking, but quickly stopped when he noticed Angeal giving him the same look without so much as a smirk. "You're serious?!"

"Well then, only one way to find out." Cassandra stated with a confident smirk.

* * *

Some time later, the heroes/heroins, along with Angeal, had returned to the beach, only to discover...

" _What_?!" Cassandra exclaimed in shock and disbelief.

The bridge had disappeared. The same gigantic bridge that lead them to this island had disappeared just like Angeal said it would. Only their caravan was left on the beach.

" _Are you kidding me_?!" Eugene exclaimed in disbelief, as he looked at the sea overhead in shock. "How are we suppose to get off this island?"

"Relax," Lance said coolly. "We'll just built ourselves a raft and get out of here. Simple as that."

"I'm afraid it's not as simply as you say it is." Angeal said as he walked up to them. "This island is filled with large and dangerous creatures that will kill you at first sight. You won't have enough time to built a raft before the creatures find you. Those flying creatures you faced are only the tip of the iceberg."

Looks of discomfort and horror filled the rest of the heroes/heroins as Angeal went on.

"It is best we go to the village and rest there until the bridge returns. I will lead you through an area of the island where there are fewer predators, and my partner, Jim, is waiting there for me."

Cassandra sighed as she folded her arms, she _really_ didn't trust this guy, but what other choice do they have? Those Leafwings were quite the trouble, and who knows if they would have survived an assault from those Psychovultures.

"Alright, lead on, Angeal!" Eugene said with a smile.

With that, Angeal simply smiled and turned, and began heading towards the direction of the of the Iwi village.

* * *

After some time of walking, Angeal and the heroes/heroins entered a Bamboo Forest, with bamboo trees _everywhere_ and almost no other plant in sight.

"Sure hope there's no predators here." Eugene said as he looked around to make sure. "Not that I wouldn't me able to handle them, mind you."

"Come on, Eugene, there's no predator that's gonna sneak up on us in a forest like this." Rapunzel stated casually, not as wary as most of her other friends.

"Please don't let your guard down, Rapunzel." Angeal told her as he continued walking without looking back. "Most of the creatures of this island are very unique; They seem to be... a combination of plant and animal."

"Wait, you mean like half-animal and half-plant hybrids?" Eugene asked in surprise.

"Precisely."

Rapunzel, Eugene, Cassandra and everyone else now looked in surprise. Not expecting something like _that_ to be possible. Then again, with all the strange things they had witnessed and done, the idea of animal-plant hybrids wasn't _that_ far off.

As they continued walking through the forest, Rapunzel noticed one of the bamboo trees slightly move on its own.

"Hey, Eugene, look at that." Rapunzel said - also catching Pascal's attention - as she stopped and pointed at the bamboo tree.

Eugene stopped and turned, and saw nothing out of the ordinary. "Look at what?"

"That bamboo tree, it moved on its own." Rapunzel said, still looking at the same bamboo tree in surprise.

"You're just imagining things, Raps." Cassandra said. "A place like this can do that to you sometimes."

"I'm not sure, Cass." Rapunzel said uneasily. "I could have sworn it moved."

"Come on, let's get a move on." Eugene said as he, and the rest, continued moving on. Though Rapunzel couldn't help but get this strange feeling, like they were all being watched.

As Rapunzel continued moving, Pascal - still on her shoulder - looked back to make sure there's no danger around.

But then... much to his utter shock and disbelief, one of the bamboo trees suddenly pulled itself from the ground, ending in a sharp point, like a spear. Slowly looking up, Pascal's face became consumed with _even_ more shock and horror at what he was now seeing.

Thinking fast, Pascal quickly turned and grabbed Rapunzel's hair before _pulling_ as hard as he could, causing Rapunzel to jolt in surprise and fall backwards, landing on her back. Just then, the bamboo tree _shot_ downwards with lightning speed, digging its sharp point into the ground, between Rapunzel's feet! If Pascal hadn't pulled her away just now, Rapunzel would have been impaled by the 'bamboo tree'!

This quickly caught the attention of the group as they turned and saw a bamboo tree close to Rapunzel who was laying on the ground, also looking at the 'bamboo tree' in shock.

Then, everyone began hearing a low growl from above. Slowly turning up, everyone paled in shock and horror at what they were now seeing. The 'bamboo tree' that nearly impaled Rapunzel was no tree at all... it was a leg... of a _gigantic_ spider-like arachnid that was towering over them, with its large body barely hidden by the forest canopy. The arachnid's eight legs were extremely long and looked just like bamboo trees to help it stay hidden, and ambush prey. The incredibly long, thin legs made it look similar to the known arachnid 'Daddy LongLegs', and it even had a similar name: 'Mother LongLegs'.

"G-G-G-G- _Giant spider_!?" Lance exclaimed out loud. Being arachnophobic, this was now quite possibly Lance's worst nightmare.

Knowing it has been spotted, the Mother LongLegs quickly raised another one of its long legs and _lunged_ it at Eugene, intending to impale him with its sharp tip! Thinking fast, the former thief quickly _jumped_ out of the way, barely avoiding the arachnid's sharp leg as it sank into the dirt. Soon, the Mother LongLegs went _completely_ on the offensive and started aiming its sharp legs at all of the heroes/heroins!

"Watch out!" Cassandra exclaimed as she jumped out of the way to avoid an incoming leg! Maximus and Fidella also jumped out of the way when another sharp leg came at them! Eugene did a back-flip to evade another leg that attempted to skewer him!

Rapunzel fearfully looked up, only to realize that the Mother LongLegs' body was _directly_ above her. The giant arachnid lowered its abdomen, and suddenly released three muscular tendrils from its underbelly! Rapunzel had no time to react as the sticky tendrils grabbed her by the shoulders and left leg, and quickly began pulling her up - toward the Mother LongLegs' stomach!

" _Rapunzel_!" Eugene exclaimed as he quickly ran and jumped to catch his love! But he was too late, Rapunzel was already hoisted more than five meters off the ground, and Eugene nearly grabbed her foot before gravity pulled him down!

Rapunzel looked up, to see the horrifying eight-eyed face of the Mother LongLegs as it began snapping its crab-like pincers at her! Pascal, who was still on Rapunzel's shoulder, even tried biting one of the tendrils, hoping to release his friend, but it was no use.

Angeal calmly, and casually, side-stepped and easily avoided a leg that narrowly missed him. Then, grabbing something in his suit, Angeal pulled a very sharp _Claymore Sword_! With a mighty swing, Angeal _cuts_ the Mother LongLegs' leg in half with with his sword!

"Cut it off at the legs!" Angeal exclaimed.

Following his example, Cassandra quickly pulled her sword and sliced another one of the monster arachnid's legs! Lance (despite his fear of spiders) did the same, followed by Hook-Foot!

This quickly caused the Mother LongLegs to nearly topple and fall down, but it managed to maintain its balance with its remaining long legs!

Eugene, however, was still looking up in fear and worry as the Mother LongLegs was still pulling Rapunzel up, determined to at least have the young princess for a meal.

"Lance, give me a sword!" Eugene exclaimed. With some hesitation, Lance threw his sword at Eugene, which he caught it. "Hold on, Rapunzel." With that, Eugene quickly _threw_ the sword (spinning) at the giant arachnid like a boomerang - _slicing_ all of the Mother LongLegs' tendrils at once, and causing Rapunzel (and Pascal) to fall to the ground (screaming)!

Luckily though, Eugene managed to catch her in his arms just in time!

At this point, Angeal pulled a crossbow and aimed it up at the giant arachnid, before firing a single arrow - and _striking_ the Mother LongLegs right in one of its eyes. The giant arachnid screeched loudly in pain as it began thrashing its body wildly and stamping its long legs blindly!

"Go! Now, while it's distracted!" Angeal exclaimed as turned and began running, followed closely by the others!

* * *

A few minutes later, the heroes/heroins and Angeal were able to escape the Bamboo Forest, and the raging Mother LongLegs.

"Thank you _so much_ Eugene!" Rapunzel exclaimed as she hugged and kissed him on the cheek for saving her life.

"No need for thanks. It's just what I do." Eugene said, smiling proudly.

Rapunzel then felt her hair being pulled, and looked to see Pascal on her shoulder with his forelimbs folded and tapping a foot, as if saying 'What about me?'

"Of course, how could I forget about my bravest chameleon ever? Come here, you..." Rapunzel hugged Pascal against her left cheek, causing the chameleon to squeal in satisfaction.

"Okay, Angeal," Eugene began as he walked up to him. "First off: _WHAT_... And second: _WAS THAT_?!"

"As I said before, this island is full of dangerous creatures." Angeal said, putting away his claymore sword and crossbow.

"And how long was it going to be until you showed us your weapons?" Cassandra asked, folding her arms and eyeing him suspiciously.

"Well, sometimes one cannot be sure who to trust." Angeal said calmly as he looked at her. "One must be prepared for anything, because even the prettiest flowers can hide a deadly wasp."

"That's at least _one thing_ we have in common..." Cassandra whispered quietly to herself, still not trusting him.

"You didn't tell us that there are _giant spiders_ on this island!" Lance exclaimed, his voice was mixed with both annoyance and fear, but mostly fear.

"Those 'giant spiders' are _nothing_ if we encounter the _real_ monsters of this island." Angeal said, now with a-now serious look and grim tone. Succeeding in putting even more fear on Strongbow and the rest.

"What are the real monsters?" Hook-Foot asked worriedly.

"They are beasts without mercy, without remorse. All they know is to kill, devour and destroy." Angeal said with his serious look and grim tone. "I call them... 'Skullcrawlers'."

"Skullcrawlers, huh? That's neat." Eugene remarked.

"Come, I will explain all about them in the village." Angeal said as he turned and began moving.

"I still don't trust him." Cassandra said.

"I know, Cass." Rapunzel said, turning to her. "But he's the only person who knows this island best, and you saw what happened back there." She pointed back with her thumb.

"Looks like we're gonna have to stay more alert than usual while we're on this island." Eugene said, now knowing that even creatures as tall as 7 meters can remain perfectly hidden.

"Yeah...! Like do what I do: play dead!" Shorty said before laying down, pretending to be dead.

"Oh brother..." Eugene sighed in annoyance.

...

After some time of walking, the group eventually came to a swampy grassland, with large puddles of water and even larger ponds around them.

"My partner is here. He's waiting for me." Angeal said with a smile.

"I can't wait to meet this Jim guy!" Rapunzel squealed, being as friendly as usual.

Eventually, the group stopped at a very large pond of water. Then, Angeal whistled loudly, as if calling for someone to come.

"Well..." Cassandra asked impatiently.

"Wait for it..." Angeal said.

Suddenly, something began moving in the water... Something began _emerging_ from the water. Everyone's eyes (expect Angeal) widened in absolute shock as their mouths were left hanging open. Emerging from the large pond, was a _gigantic_ water buffalo! Although the creature resembled an abnormally large water buffalo, it also had many differences: Most notably, its incredibly large horns were forked into three branches, and most of its body appeared to be covered with green algae. This herbivore stood about 13 meters tall, and had an interesting name: Sker Buffalo.

" _What_ is _that_?!" Cassandra asked, completely shocked and astounded, as the Sker Buffalo stopped in front of them. Even the two horses, Maximus and Fidella, could only look up in shock at the gigantic buffalo.

" _That_ would be my partner, Jim." Angeal said with a smile. The others were now even more shocked to discover that Jim was in fact a gigantic buffalo all this time.

The Sker Buffalo, named Jim, slowly walked up to the others, and observed them for a moment - before bowing his head in a respectful manner.

"Oh, a gentleman, huh?" Rapunzel giggled, admiring the Sker Buffalo's polite, respectful and gentlemanly welcome.

"Come, the village is not much farther from here." Angeal said as Jim lowered his head, allowing for his partner to climb on top of his back.

"I gotta try this!" Rapunzel exclaimed as she also climbed on the Sker Buffalo.

"Sorry Max, I'm going with Blondie on this one." Eugene said, before joining Rapunzel.

"I'm going, too!" Hook-Foot said, gabbing Shorty before going up the giant buffalo as well.

"I'm not missing _this_." Cassandra said, getting excited by the idea of riding something this big, and putting her distrust aside for a bit.

Maximus himself looked a bit jealous, but was quick to put it aside. The Sker Buffalo turned to him, and gave both him and Fidella a warm, friendly smile, to which they smiled back at him (albeit a little awkward in Maximus' case).

"Now, to the village." Angeal said as Jim got up and began moving with Maximus and Fidella.

...

After some few more hours of traveling, the heroes reached a rainforest area of Skull Island, where they stumbled upon an abandoned temple. Once they were there, Jim stopped and Angeal climbed down from his back.

"What's he doing now?" Cassandra asked impatiently.

But shortly after she asked that, people painted in gray and green to blend in _exactly_ like the background, suddenly revealed themselves as they approached them. The heroes/heroins were never _once_ aware or notice the tribe people near them, making them gasp in surprise when they see them. Cassandra nearly reached for her sword until Angeal lifted his hands.

"Everyone, please do not make any actions that would be 'unhealthy'." Angeal calmly said. The tribes people looked at him for a moment before bowing their heads, Angeal smiled and turned to the heroes. "It's alright. We can pass."

The heroes looked completely surprised as Jim began moving forward.

...

Angel and Jim have lead the heroes/heroins to the Iwi village, which was completely surrounded by large, wooden walls with sharp spikes on the outside, to prevent the deadly predators from reaching the village and the people inside. The heroes and heroins looked in amazement to see the tribe men, women and children and their homes, which were also made of wood. Most of the them wore red clothes and were only partially clothed, and most had yellow paint markings on their bodies.

"Everyone, welcome the Iwi village." Angeal said as the heroes got off of Jim and looked at the village and it's people in surprise and amazement.

"Wow!" Rapunzel gasped as she looked at the Iwi people in amazement.

The people themselves were relatively calm and quiet, in fact, they never spoke whatsoever. The group began to split up and look around the village. Rapunzel introduced herself to some of the people.

"Hi, I'm Rapunzel!" The young princess said cheerfully as she grinned happily. However, the people said nothing and looked at her blankly, much to Rapunzel's confusion. "Um... can you talk?"

"They _can_ talk, Rapunzel." Angeal said as he approached her. "They just prefer _not_ to."

Eugene and Lance were examining the giant wall that protects the Iwi.

"I gotta say, this wall is even _better_ than the one in Corona!" Eugene said in amazement. "Not only is it bigger but it also has spikes on the other side as extra defense! When we get home, we have _got_ to do something like this!" He said as he knocked on the wall to test it. But just as he did that, some of the Iwi warriors suddenly pointed their sharp spears at him. "Is it something I said?" Eugene asked, trying to hide his fear.

"Eugene, please don't knock on the walls like that." Angeal called out. "These walls are built to keep out the predators. But everything locks together from this side. Take out one post and an entire section of the wall goes down."

"Oh, right. Sorry." Eugene grinned sheepishly as the warriors lowered their weapons.

"If you're done antagonizing them, you can come here and check this out." Cassandra called out to Eugene.

After that little thing was over, Angeal lead the heroes and heroins to an extremely large, empty ship that crashed here many years ago. While on the outside it looked nothing interesting, the inside was where truly shined. The group looked in awe at all the various paintings on the walls of the inside of the ship.

"Well this just got a lot more interesting." Eugene muttered as he looked at the different paintings.

"This is where the Iwi honor the last of their saviors:" Angeal pointed at a particular painting that resembled a bipedal gorilla. "Kong."

Rapunzel and the others looked at the painting in amazement, but then got a realization what (or rather, _who_ ) they were looking at. The image of bipedal ape quickly made them come to a conclusion.

"We know that creature..." Rapunzel said.

This, in turn, sparked surprise from Angeal as he turned to her. "You do?" He couldn't help but ask.

"Yes. Several months ago, our kingdom was attacked by some creatures, and then a giant, brown ape came out of nowhere and saved us." Rapunzel explained. She and the rest of her friends finally pieced the puzzle together and realized it. The giant ape that came to Corona and fought those monsters was Kong! He must have entered Corona thanks to the _same_ magical bridge that also allowed them to cross over to Skull Island!

"Well, that's convenient." Eugene muttered.

"And those creatures that attacked us must have been the Skullcrawlers." Cassandra said.

"I see..." Angeal muttered. "It's as I feared, that same magical bridge can also be a problem. You were lucky that Kong was able to take care of the problem back then. For you see, this bridge is how the Skullcrawlers came to Skull Island in the first place."

The heroes/heroins looked at Angeal in surprise.

"This island was once a paradise for Kong's species." He began. "Until the day the Skullcrawlers came, thanks to that bridge, and began destroying and laying waste to everything. Kong's race fought them viciously for many years, and the casualties on both sides began to rise. The Iwi were refugees, fleeing from another tribe. by the time they arrived on Skull Island, only _two_ of Kong's race survived the battle, and those two were Kong's parents. All the others were slaughtered, but many Skullcrawlers still remained."

The heroes looked shocked, horrified and even amazed by this. The Skullcrawlers were _truly_ monsters, and they felt a great sense of relief that those few Skullcrawlers that exited Skull Island have been dealt with thanks to Kong himself. If the Skullcrawlers were to escape Skull Island and invade the outside world, they would not be able to be stopped, and would destroy, devour and dominate whatever stood in their path! The mere idea of the Skulcrawlers successfully escaping Skull Island was extremely terrifying.

"What happened to Kong's parents." Rapunzel asked.

"They died saving Kong from the Skullcrawlers, and Kong himself was forced to watch the monsters kill his parents right in front of his very eyes at such a young age." Angeal said sadly as he lowered his head.

The heroes now looked completely horrified. This was _especial_ for Rapunzel, as she could understand and sympathize with the pain the great ape had suffered. She could also now understand why her own father was so overprotective and unwilling to let her out of his sight. How Kong's own father fought to the death and sacrificed his life so his son may live, it made her feel deep sympathy for both her father and Kong. And not only was Kong orphaned, but he was also the last of his kind, with no others like him to interact with, something Rapunzel can also sympathize with. Having spent 18 years in a tower and used by Gothal for her own, selfish reasons, and having never interacted with another human being, Rapunzel could understand the loneliness that Kong was experiencing.

But she wasn't alone, even Cassandra, who was normally as though as nails, could not help but pity and feel sorry for Kong, as he was like her, in a way, an orphan. But in her case, she was adopted by the Captain of the Royal Guards, who became her adoptive father, but Kong never had such an experience. The same went for Eugene, Hook-Foot, Pascal, Maximus and Fidella, as they felt deeply sorry for Kong and his loss.

Kong was not a savage beast... He was an orphan who suffered a horrible tragedy and was forced to take the responsibilities of an adult at a very young age.

* * *

 **Mother LongLegs:**

 **Despite its spider-like** **appearance, it is currently unclear if these gigantic arachnids are truly spiders (Araneae) or if they are more closely related to harvestmen (Opiliones). The Mother LongLegs is an all-female, self-reproducing species that is unlike any arachnid seen on Earth, they are a unique natural hybrid of flora and fauna, having actual traces of bamboo fused within their DNA. This makes them the perfect predators for the north-side of Skull Island, that is filled with bamboo trees. When the Mother LongLegs is standing still, the bamboo trunks conceal it perfectly, turning an entire bamboo forest into a silent death trap. The long legs of the arachnid end in sharp points, designed to impale and skewer unsuspecting prey, something that would make Vlad the Impaler proud. Even more gruesome, the Mother LongLegs absorbs the vital nutrients and bodily fluids of its impaled prey through its long legs, like a milkshake through a straw. These creatures are not just man-eaters, they DRINK their prey. Another way of feeding is via the three muscular tendrils that Mother LongLegs unleash, ensnaring prey and lifting it high off the ground to be swallowed by its open stomach.**

 **Sker Buffalo:**

 **The Sker Buffalo is a super-biological bovid that is largely amphibious in its grazing patterns. Although closely related to the Asian water buffalo, the Sker Buffalo differs in more than a few ways: Aside from its larger size, the Sker Buffalo's back and flank are fused with hard bony structures and dense green foliage. Much like the Mother LongLegs, the Sker Buffalo is a unique natural fusion of plant and animal. Sustaining this flora-fauna biology is pulmonary heart divided into four chambers, two of which pump blood through the** **musculature system, and two of which pump highly oxygenated chlorophyll to the plant life growing on its back. The Sker Buffalo can be submerged underwater for days, with only its plant-filled back residing above the water, providing the herbivore with camouflage. Although mostly docile, the Sker Buffalo can be extremely dangerous if threatened or provoked, its large horns are a deadly defense weapon against most predators, and despite its large size, the Sker Buffalo can run at speeds that rival that of horses.**


End file.
